BUYING IS CHEAPER THAN RENTING IN MOST PLACES Many renters would be better off buying a home than continuing to pay steep rental costs, finds a new study. The monthly payment on a median priced home is more affordable than the monthly fair market rent on a three-bedroom property in 76% of the U.S. counties, according to RealtyTrac’s Residential Rental Property Analysis, which encompassed 461 counties nationwide with populations of at least 100,000. Overall Researchers found that fair market rents represented 28% of the estimated median household income, while monthly house payments on a median-priced home – which included a 10% down payment and property taxes, home insurance, and mortgage insurance – represented 24% of the estimated median income. "From a